Post-Metal – Page 51 – Wonderbox Metal

Rorcal – κρέων (Creon)(Review)

Rorcal are a Blackened Doom band from Switzerland. This is their fourth album.

Rorcal are an intriguing band. Having produced a lot of Doom/Sludge/Post-Metal music over the years, their last couple of releases have shown an increasing Black Metal side to their sound, which they now seem to have fully incorporated into their repertoire, (see their split with Process of Guilt, for example). In fact, they’re pretty much at the point now where you could describe them as a Black Metal band and not raise too many eyebrows.

This latest album sees the band offer forth four new tracks spread across 53 minutes, each one a monster. κρέων (Creon) once more demonstrates the band’s mastery of Extreme Metal in all its guises.

The Black Metal elements are present and correct, as are the Sludge, Post-Metal and Doom ones. Rorcal have always had a surprisingly clean and sophisticated sound, despite their predilections for darkness, and κρέων (Creon) is no different. The music may be grim and charged with an energetic negativity, but the band always seem to manage to sound cutting edge no matter what they’re doing, even in their sludgiest or most blackened moments.

These songs mix blackened fury with progressive intent and atmospheric Sludge. As always, whatever aspect of whatever style that Rorcal are currently focusing their attentions on seems to work for them, and the aura of malevolent aggression and downbeat nastiness that these songs exude is palpable.

So, Rorcal return, triumphant, bold and victorious. They are fast becoming one of my favourite purveyors of darkened delights.

Valerinne – Monumenta (Review)

This is the third album from Romanian instrumental Post-Metal band Valerinne.

Treading the same stylistic landscape as bands like Pelican and Russian Circles, Valerinne offer up 63 minutes of long, epic tracks that take the listener on a journey in sound and the many ways that it can be used to evoke certain feelings.

Post-Metal and Post-Rock are rightly known for bright, resplendent guitar melodies, shooting out of, (usually), darker music to create multi-faceted and rich compositions that aim to strike a chord with the listener. The music on Monumenta certainly meets that goal and these five songs have more than enough meaningful content to satisfy.

The guitars aren’t the only star of the show though, as not only is there an extremely solid rhythm section providing a firm backbone to the tracks, but added synths also make appearances, subtly enhancing the musical soundscapes and adding value whenever and wherever they’re used.

Deftly utilising the Post-Metal/Post-Rock tried-and-tested build/release mechanic, these tracks take their time exploring the various sounds and feelings of the world they find themselves in, building to crescendo before moving off in into other areas, repeatedly, as the nuances of the songs demand. These are frequently slow and gradual shifts, with the music having a glacial, unhurried feel, despite the sometimes upbeat drums and rhythms.

Albums like this are effortless to enjoy; it’s very easy to just put them on and slip out of the everyday world, getting lost in the exotic and enticing soundscapes created by a talented group such as Valerinne. Press play on this album and this is precisely what happens.

Sit back, take it all in and savour.

Camel of Doom – Terrestrial (Review)

This is the fourth album from UK Doom Metal band Camel of Doom.

This unusually named band play experimental Doom Metal that contains elements of Progressive Rock, psychedelia and a bit of Sludge Metal alongside the usual genre trappings. Continue reading “Camel of Doom – Terrestrial (Review)”

Lycus – Chasms (Review)

This is the second album from US Doom band Lycus.

Lycus play the kind of hugely impressive and accomplished Doom that makes being into this kind of music worth it. Chasms is heavy, slow, full of dark atmosphere and is the kind of thing you can just get lost in.

The band combine Sludge, Funeral Doom, Post-Metal, Death Metal and Black Metal into their sprawling Doom-drenched sound.

The emotive guitars are frequently designed to wring out every last drop of negative emotion from the listener, dragging them deep down into Lycus’ gloom-lit domain.

Deep growling vocals sound huge and intimidating, while lonesome cleans add another aspect to the band’s delivery and allow them to explore other moods and feelings that wouldn’t necessarily fit well with growls.

The dark, doomy worlds that the band effortlessly paint across these 44 minutes are punctuated with moments of Black Metal violence that manage to not feel out of place at all, despite the change in speed and feeling.

A cello also appears infrequently, highlighting another sonic string to their bow, adding another layer of depth to their encompassing sound.

It’s these kind of touches that allow Lycus the freedom to do what they want and create the soundscapes that they feel reflect what they are trying to say. The fact that they do all of this exceedingly well is a huge bonus for the listener, of course.

It’s emotionally stirring stuff, and it’s hard not to get lost in the maelstrom and transported to the grim realms in which Lycus inhabit.

Despite how immediately enjoyable it certainly is, it’s very definitely a grower of an album though, requiring multiple sittings to properly appreciate its subtle and seductive charms. Once it has its claws in you though, there’s no escape. Into the chasms you go.

Sea – Demo (Review)

This is the début demo from US Doom band Sea.

Sea play their Doom with a good amount of Sludge and roiling Neurosis-styled claustrophobic heaviness.

These three tracks drag themselves along, lazily pounding out heavy riffs alternated with more restrained sections, with even the odd guitar solo drifting out from the sludgy miasma that they create. They shift up a gear on rare occasion, introducing some blast beats into their style. These are infrequent and short lived, but it all adds to the music in the right way.

The vocals mainly consist of rough semi-cleans and higher, softer, clean vocals that emphasise the more emotive parts of the songs. These lighter parts showcase a Post-Metal side of the band, allowing them to demonstrate the breadth of ability that they clearly have.

There are some really strong guitar parts across these tracks and the band stand out quite quickly as being above-average in the songwriting department. It’s all very memorable, surprisingly diverse and even catchy for the style.

Sea have made a good impression with this demo and the songs are very enjoyable. I like this kind of gritty, heavy and emotive style of Doom and it would surely be a hit for fans of bands like Neurosis, Sorxe and Sea of Bones, in my opinion.

A highly promising first release.

Hemelbestormer – Aether (Review)

Hemelbestormer are a Post-Metal band from Belgium. This is their debut album.

Hemelbestormer are an instrumental band and they have created a sweeping epic of an album with four long, sprawling tracks lasting a total of 60 minutes.

Here we have an interesting and involved merging of different styles that are similar enough to get along well, resulting in the quite monolithic Aether.

Post-Metal, Doom and Sludge Metal are the main ingredients. The swirling Doom/Sludge claustrophobia of some of Neurosis’ more abrasive work is met by the expansive Post-Metal that the likes of Isis did so well. This is alongside elements of the heavier work of Pelican, with even some Post-Rock sensibilities of a band like Russian Circles getting a look in too.

The tracks take the listener on a journey through exploratory soundscapes and the Post-Metal build/release mechanic is artfully used throughout.

Aether is as heavily atmospheric as you can probably imagine, but in contrast to some bands that play this style, (especially, it seems, instrumental ones), Hemelbestormer are not afraid to let the distortion properly kick in and get really huge and heavy with the guitars. This pleases me greatly.

I love music that you can truly get lost and absorbed in and this is definitely one such album. Some instrumental bands can easily lose focus due to the lack of a singer, I find, but Hemelbestormer really don’t suffer from that problem. The music is detailed and nuanced enough to keep you coming back to it, but as mentioned previously, they know when to take things up a notch with the heavy guitars at just the right moments.

Very impressive. Take the time to listen to this.

Battle Path – Ambedo (Review)

Battle Path are a Progressive Blackened Doom band from the US and this is their third album.

After two extremely gratifying releases, Battle Path are back with a slight change in direction. This time the band have shifted to a more experimental version of their sound, adding keyboards and synths to create expansive songs with an increase in atmosphere.

The blackened bile is still here though, it’s just now wrapped up in a Progressive Metal coating that gives it quite a 70s sheen in some ways, although not properly of course as they didn’t have Black Metal back then. But if they did…

The crushing Doom is still here too. It’s also swaddled in atmospherics that makes everything sound grander and more epic than the band’s previous work. It’s heavy, emotive and devastating.

In reality, of course, there’s no clear delineation between the Black Metal and Doom aspects, with everything flowing and merging together quite nicely. The band have merely added to this already potent cocktail with keyboards/synths, as well as some Post-Metal influences here and there, reminiscent of Cult of Luna, (as embodied on the instrumental title track, for example); in some ways the band are mirroring Cult of Luna’s development into more experimental pastures that offer a wider, more expansive musical scope. Battle Path and Cult of Luna don’t really sound like each other though, it should be stressed, but they do seem to be on similar journeys in some respects.

Vocally we get harsh, blackened screams for the most part, although these are added to by some bowel-shakingly deep growls on occasion. These are used relatively minimally compared to a lot of bands, with the music being allowed to do the talking for the most part, even when the serrated screams are ringing out.

With this album Battle Path have improved and progressed on their already impressive sound and have produced an album that shows a band truly coming into their own. The added progressive elements have enhanced and improved their core delivery so that Ambedo is a truly wonderful listen.

I loved Battle Path before this, and it seems that I love them even more now.

Latitudes – Old Sunlight (Review)

This is the third album from UK Post-Metal/Sludge band Latitudes.

Latitudes are the kind of band who are off doing their own thing and everyone should be happy and pleased that they are.

Latitudes have an apocalyptically heavy sound that masterfully utilises the wall-of-guitars approach to create cascading tsunamis of distorted feeling. Unusually though, this is shot through with streaking arcs of bright melody, raising the emotive levels of the tracks tenfold. Needless to say, this is a talent that most bands lack.

There’s a distinct Sludge-fuelled Progressive element to their Post-Metal that lends the album a cinematic quality, as if the songs are describing various scenes and stories throughout. This is further enhanced by the fact that a sizeable chunk of Old Sunlight is instrumental, with the vocals only appearing at key points throughout.

When vocals do appear, they’re soft, angelic and gloriously melodic. Adding a melancholic sweetness to the tracks, it shows how well Old Sunlight treads the fine line between negativity and positivity, or classically; darkness and light. This is a theme for Latitudes, with their music managing to blur the boundaries between these two points, so much so that they frequently do both at the same time, as hinted at in the name of the album.

The band certainly have a talent for writing these dual-purpose songs, with yet another example of this being complexity vs simplicity, again, usually concurrently. When channelled into creating soundscapes that are both bright and hopeful, yet dark and hopeless, it’s a very beguiling and enticing combination.

This is the kind of album you return to repeatedly, never quite having fully explored all of its winding avenues.

Join me and bask in the light of the dying sun.

Wonderbox Metal End of Year List – Best Metal of 2015

Happy new year, Metal fans! So let’s take a look at some of the best releases of 2015.

As usual, I’d like to include the usual disclaimers about the subjective nature of any such list, and how if I were to compile it again at a different time, it would undoubtedly look different.

With that being said, there was a Hell of a lot of good music released in 2015, and the below is just the tip of the iceberg, really.

I have decided on a top-30 this year, although it could easily have been more. Some of the other notable bands that have made it onto the list in previous versions include the following, in no particular order –

Heaving Earth, Nyx, Arcturus, The Big Jaz z Duo, Unhold, Apocrophex, Below the Sun, Ecferus, Hope Drone, Unbreakable Hatred, Ancient Moon, Terra Deep, Abyssal Ascendant

Even just right here, that’s a lot of great Metal, nevermind all of the ones I’ve probably forgotten.

So, without further preamble, starting at the bottom and working our way up – I give you the Wonderbox Metal-approved Best of 2015 list…

30 – Vreid – Sólverv

Norwegian Melodic Black Metal that’s sharp, colourful, fast and full of energy and colour. Having loved their precursor band Windir, I still can’t believe I overlooked Vreid for so long. Thankfully, that is now rectified. This is atmospheric in ways that most bands merely aspire too, and Sólverv is a great listen.

29 – Infinight – Apex Predator

Infinight offer sophisticated, maturely-written and well-played Power Metal. They’re the only Power Metal band to make it onto the list this year, with Apex Predator living up to its name in some ways, as this really is a top-tier album. Infinight are all about the songs, and on Apex Predator they certainly deliver.

28 – Nervous Impulse – Time to Panic

Nervous Impulse offered up some of the most intense and exhilarating Deathgrind that I’ve heard in a good while, and Time to Panic is 36 minutes of Grade-A Grinding chaos. It’s both heavy and extreme, but still manges to find the time for song-structures and skilled writing.

27 – Flesh of the Stars – Hide

Traditional Doom Metal with an occult, sinister vibe; Flesh of the Stars are perfectly attuned to their chosen style and Hide is thick with atmosphere and memorable music. Some of the parts of this release are enough to get the hairs standing on end, and Hide is a thoroughly enjoyable listen.

26 – Forgotten Tomb – Hurt Yourself and the Ones You Love

Forgotten Tomb return with another album of Depressive Black Metal, this time with a more aggressive slant than some of their previous work. Catchy without sounding commercial, they really have honed their style to a fine killing point, and this album is definitely a keeper.

25 – De Profundis – Kingdom of the Blind

UK band De Profundis have flourished with their latest release of Death-inspired Technical/Progressive Death Metal. As a band who are striving to be the best they can be and deliver music that’s both challenging and accessible, (for the style), De Profundis succeed and Kingdom of the Blind is a firm favourite at Wonderbox Metal.

24 – Cult of Occult – Five Degrees of Insanity

A crushing, filthy display of ugly Doom across 65 minutes; Cult of Occult’s latest release is an exemplar of Sludge Metal dragged out to epic Doom lengths. This album positively drips with anti-social scorn and horrible intentions, which means we crave it all the more. We like the abuse.

23 – Sulphur Aeon – Gateway to the Antisphere

As Death Metal albums go this is simply gargantuan. Bowel-shaking vocals, monstrous riffs and mysterious, underworld atmospheres make for songs that are heavy and brutal yet still have more emotive qualities to them than most. A very impressive release from this German band.

22 – Tine – The Forest Dreams of Black

Symphonic Blackened Death Metal is quite hard to do well, but Tine have it all sewn up nicely. This is a passionate and personal release that exudes emotion and atmosphere amongst the brutality and power. If you only get one Black/Death Metal hybrid release this year then this is the one.

21 – Blaze of Perdition – Near Death Revelations

Supreme, sophisticated Black Metal art, with lashings of occult atmosphere and malevolent auras. Near Death Revelations succeeds in capturing the essence of what makes Black Metal so exciting and provocative. Blaze of Perdition easily take up the mantle of leaders and not followers on this album.

20 – Outre – Ghost Chants

More sophisticated Black Metal here, this time from Poland’s Outre. Ghost Chants is an exceptional release that combines Atmospheric Black Metal with Post-Black Metal sensibilities to create transcendental Dark Art. Upon repeated listens there’s always something new to discover.

19 – Fuck the Facts – Desire Will Rot

A veritable Canadian Grindcore institution, Fuck the Facts are always a good listen. This latest album of theirs is no different and presents the listener with a multi-faceted Grind release that demonstrates just how effective the style can be when in the right hands. Challenging and impressive.

18 – Corpo-Mente – Corpo-Mente

This is exotic, sensual music that combines Dark Rock, Trip-Hop and Electro Avant-Garde. It’s something a bit different from everything else on this list and shines all the brighter because of it. This album is a sumptuous feast of aural delights and contains so much WOW-factor it’s hard to credit. Listen and be converted.

17 – Wrvth – Wrvth

Wrvth have produced a hugely impressive experimental/Progressive/Technical Death Metal album that takes a lot of emotive qualities from Post-Metal and works them into its strange brew. An innovative and impressive release from a very talented band.

16 – Ogotay – Dead God’s Prophet

Here we have Polish Death Metal at the height of its game. Dead God’s Prophet is muscular Death Metal that has a touch of the mystical and the mysterious about it, resulting in an extremely strong album that blows away the competition.

15 – Cattle Decapitation – The Anthropocene Extinction

These veteran Death Metallers keep getting better with age, and The Anthropocene Extinction is a perfect example of how Death Metal can be true to its roots while also being cutting edge. This is 46 minutes of quality Death Metal that’s not afraid to do its own thing and succeeds because of this. Savagery and intelligence combined.

14 – Immortal Bird – Empress/Abscess

Immortal Bird are Death Metal, but only in the loosest of senses. Theirs is a more expansive palette than most bands’, with Empress/Abscess being more refined and all-encompassing of other styles than purely Death Metal. It’s an engrossing listen and indicative of so much that’s good in Extreme Metal.

13 – Winter Calling – As Darkness Falls

Polished and professional Progressive Rock that’s been a real fixture of some of my playlists; this is the kind of album that just grows and grows. Since originally writing my review of it I’ve grown to love it more and more. As Darkness Falls contains catchy and memorable songs and takes the listener on a real journey through Winter Calling’s world.

12 – Behold! The Monolith – Architects of the Void

A varied Doom/Sludge Metal release that mixes up sub-genres to create an involving album that has that special secret ingredient, causing it to add up to much greater than the sum of its parts. This is an album that has come to mean a lot to me and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

11 – Witchsorrow – No Light, Only Fire

No Light, Only Fire is the most enjoyable album of Traditional Doom Metal I’ve heard this year. Well-written songs backed up by a thick guitar sound means that this is a sterling release that should be enjoyed by an Metal fan. This is one I can listen to again and again and again.

10 – He Whose Ox Is Gored – The Camel, the Lion, the Child

This is a band who have an individual and interesting take on Progressive Atmospheric Doom. Theirs is music that’s rich and emotive, taking multiple influences and styles and incorporating them into a cohesive whole. The Camel, the Lion, the Child has lots of character and isn’t afraid to be itself.

9 – Khemmis – Absolution

Another interesting Doom Metal album. This one flirts with Traditional Doom but also injects a nastier Sludge Metal influence into things, resulting in an album that spans both styles very nicely indeed. There’s a lot of hidden gold on Absolution and this is a first-rate album.

8 – Antigama – The Insolent

Where can you find rabid, brutal Grindcore mixed up with a will to experiment and push boundaries? Why, wherever you find Antigama, that’s where. The Insolent is a force of nature, effortlessly combining savagery and intelligence with ease. Complex brutality for a refined palate.

7 – Cloud Rat – Qliphoth

Cloud Rat deliver us yet more inventive and individual Grindcore. Theirs is an experimental and surprisingly atmospheric and emotive take on the genre, but no less vicious for it. The songs have depth and intensity, and the band have proven what massive talent they have. You need Cloud Rat in your life.

6 – Secrets of the Sky – Pathway

An eagerly awaited release by yours-truly; Secrets of the Sky once again show why their Atmospheric Doom/Post- Metal is an essential listen. This aptly-named album takes the listener on a real journey through vivid soundscapes. Bigger and better than ever before.

5 – Abstracter – Wound Empire

Rarely has cloying, suffocating Sludge felt so visceral and nastily enticing. This is a gloomy, heavy, grim masterpiece of atmospheric brutality. Effortlessly combining the beauty of Post-Metal with the dirty horror of Sludge, this album has definitely become a firm favourite of mine.

4 – Mammoth Storm – Fornjot

Mammoth storm play vibrant, colourful Doom with lashings of atmosphere and Post-Metal transcendental qualities. I was very quickly captivated by the immensity of this album and just how compelling and engaging it is. Hugely impressive.

3 – Minsk – The Crash & the Draw

This is a hefty slice of Post-Metal that showcases a varied, multi-textural delivery, rich with evocative and emotive soundscapes. The songs seem to build on themselves until the music acts like waves, reinforcing itself. It’s easy to get wrapped up and lost in their music and Minsk should be way more popular than they are after releasing this gem of an album.

2 – Un – The Tomb of All Things

This is a dark and personal trip into the dimly-lit world of all things Doom. The album offers a dark and harrowing musical journey that you’d be foolish not to explore. The level of depth and emotion rawly on display here is staggering, and Un really have created something special.

1 – Midnight Odyssey – Shards of Silver Fade

And here we have it – top spot. This year it has been awarded to Shards of Silver Fade, which is Atmospheric Black Metal of the highest order. This colossal and epic release is a massive 143 minutes in length and every part of it is essential. Highly emotive and deeply moving, this is richly evocative music that you just can’t fail to be touched by. This is an incredibly special album that’s just exceptional and demands attention. I can’t rate this highly enough, which is why it’s my album of the year. Go and find a dark place and listen to it as soon as you can.

I wonder what 2016 will bring? I can’t wait to find out.

Sealclubber – Stoical (Review)

Sealclubber are a UK Sludge band and this is their début album.

Sealclubber play abrasive Progressive/Post-Sludge Metal that takes in elements of Crust and Hardcore to produce a lively and gritty 44 minutes of music.

The sharp Hardcore energy of some of the riffs is also alive in the harsh shouted vocals, which are full of both threat and feeling.

This is juxtaposed against the slower, more atmospheric parts that have a dirty Post-Metal sheen to them, like something struggling to be born whole out of a world of filth.

Add to this the emotive Sludge elements that the band seem to pull out of nowhere when they need to and you have a very well-rounded release that shows Sealclubber to be an uncompromising and multifaceted band who are capable of many moods throughout these six songs.

This puts me in mind of the old Cave-In and Botch releases where both bands really pushed what it meant to be a Hardcore band. Sealclubber have similar ambitions it seems, only coming from a Sludge angle and delving deeper into both, (quite divergent), Hardcore and Post-Metal routes at the same time. This split focus shouldn’t work, but it really does, marrying what little common ground there is between the two styles with a murky Sludge Metal coverall.

With divergent influences, comes great risk, but with great talent, comes great reward.

Loved it.